We often talk about our Harvest Trip as the beginning of filming for Can Wine Save the Planet, but the truth is that we did a bit of filming back in June. We headed out to Paso Robles to spend a day at Tablas Creek, interviewing some of the folks there who are instrumental in the way they are pushing the needle on how to be more than “Sustainable in the vineyard.”
Tablas Creek in May
It was a cloudy morning in late May after what had been a wet spring. There is a creek that runs under the road just before you reach the property, and back in March, it washed out the road with the heavy rains from the atmospheric rivers. The vineyard held its own during those rains. The soil work they have been doing here through their biodynamic and regenerative farming methods staved away most of the erosion they might have seen. Cover crops work! All those roots hold the soil in place, and the organisms, microorganisms, and roots help avoid soil compaction so that the water can seep into the ground.
Gustavo Prieto, Director of Biodynamics at Tablas Creek
On the morning we visited, after getting some shots around the vineyard, including a few drone passes, we met with Gustavo Prieto, their Director of Biodynamics. He led us down to see their new biodynamic shed tucked into a lower part of the vineyard, away from power and electrical interference. It is here that he stores and makes the biodynamic preparations. The place is a bit magical, sitting on a small meadow next to a section of forest. Built into the hillside, this dry-stone building keeps the biodynamic preparations cool and moist.
Jordon Lonborg, Tablas Creek Viticulturist
& Erin Mason, Tablas Creek Regenerative Specialist
In addition, we had conversations with Jordon Lonborg, the viticulturist, and Erin Mason, the Regenerative Specialist, in the vineyard. They shared their perspectives on the significance of biodynamic and regenerative agriculture.
Jordon felt that the most important aspect of being Regenerative Organic Certified was Farmworker Fairness. The Certification requires living wages, safe working conditions, long-term commitments, transparency and accountability, and collaborative leadership.
“You are not farming regeneratively unless you are paying your people a living wage. A living wage is not a minimum wage. It is what it takes to live in that community. Fifteen dollars an hour minimum wage in California is higher than the rest of the country for the most part. But nobody is living on fifteen dollars an hour in Napa or Sonoma or Paso Robles.
So what does that tell you? You invest in your people, and they’re going to take ownership of the property. They’re going to work more efficiently, they’re going to work more carefully, they’re going to work faster, they’re going to work harder, and they want to do it. They want to be here. They are going to take ownership in the property. They want to be the crew that gets called back to Tablas Creek when Tablas Creek needs work.”
Erin explained what her position as the Regenerative Specialist covered. One of the most interesting is here role of gathering information for studies they are part of with several universities on the effects of Regenerative Agriculture. I find this scientific research to be really exciting.
Jason Haas, Tablas Creek General Manager on becoming Regenerative Organic Certified
Jason Haas, the Tablas Creek General Manager, took time to speak with us in the tasting room about why he felt it was so important to become Regenerative Organic Certified.
Tablas Creek’s commitment to regenerative organic certification goes beyond just sustainable practices. Jason emphasized the importance of not only preserving the land but actively improving it for future generations. He explained how regenerative agriculture focuses on building healthy soil, promoting biodiversity, and sequestering carbon. By implementing these practices, Tablas Creek aims to not only produce exceptional wines but also contribute to the overall health of their ecosystem.
During our conversation, Jason mentioned that the decision to become regenerative organic certified was driven by their core values and a desire to be a leader in the industry. He expressed his belief that sustainable farming methods are not enough to combat the environmental challenges we face today. By going beyond sustainability and adopting regenerative practices, Tablas Creek hopes to inspire other wineries and farms to follow suit. He finds it their responsibility to push the needle in the industry toward better farming.
We also discussed how Tablas Creek has worked to decrease their impact on the environment with product packaging. Here at the tasting room, they have employed kegs for many of their wines, seeing no point in bottling that wine just to carry it a few feet into the tasting room. This saves a tremendous amount of glass, time, energy, and money. They also have 3 different wines that they now offer in a bag-in-box format. These wines, their Patelin line, are meant to be enjoyed young and keep well in this format. They took a chance on this packaging and were overwhelmed by the positive response. The wines sold out fast!
Early Morning Counoise Harvest
We returned recently this fall to catch a bit of harvest. Ian Consoli, the Tablas Creek Director of Marketing, helped us to catch a morning Counoise harvest. The crew was starting at 3 am, but Ian suggested we arrive around 5 am to see the harvest and sunrise. Whew! I was grateful not to have to be up at 3 am!
The harvest crew at Tablas is out so early for a couple of reasons. Harvesting early means the grapes are cool and are less likely to break, and this allows them to work an 8-hour shift starting at 3 am, with a break for lunch at 7 am, then on to around 11:30 am, finishing before the heat of the day.
Ian had said to drive in and look for the lights. They were easy to find. This is a fairly steep hill in the center of the vineyard, and the crew was more than halfway through when we arrived. Headlamps and lights from the tractor lit the rows they were working on. The sky was star-filled. I picked out Orion.
Frost fans in the fall?
I could also hear a hum. It had a bit of Doppler, sounding like a passing helicopter. I discovered it was a large rotating fan that is typically used for frost protection. This harvest morning in late October, temperatures were predicted to get below freezing.
I spoke to Jordy later and asked if using the frost fans in the fall was standard practice. He said he had never done this before, but they had a block of Roussanne that had not yet been picked that sits in a low spot on the vineyard, so he figured it couldn’t hurt to turn them on and keep the grapes and vines from freezing before they were harvested.
As the crew continued to harvest the Counoise, we watched the sunrise, slowly turning the sky a deep lavender over the ridges to the east, silhouetting the oak trees on the ridge and then lighting up the hills to the west toward the coast.
Mourvedre on Scruffy Hill
The next pick of the day was on Scruffy Hill. This was a section of Mourvédre in this head-trained and very steep block. The crew asked me to snap a crew shot as they gathered to start.
Scruffy Hill is planted to low density, which means there is space around each of the vines. On this hill they are spaced 12 x 12, which gives them about 350 vines per acre. This spacing makes this block more resilient during drought and heat events.
The block is also head-trained or Gobelet, as they call it in France. This method grows the vine like a bush or small tree. Gobelet refers to a goblet, which is the shape, the trunk as the stem with the vine rounding out above it.
This method is traditionally used in Chateauneuf du Pape. While it is much less expensive to plant, without all the trellising posts and wires, it does require a greater effort at harvest. These vines must be hand-harvested. Of course everything at Tablas is hand-harvested, but trellised vines allow an ease of picking, with vines all in a straight line and the fruiting zone at a set height. It’s a bit more complex with a head-trained vine.
Scuffy Hill soil is difficult walking, your feet slide in the loose rocks on the steep slope.
This block, that is home to much of the fruit in their En Gobelet blend, is planted to not only Mourvedre, but also Grenache, Syrah, , Counoise and Roussanne.
Tablas Creek Lamb for future pairings
Before we left, we picked up some Tablas Creek lamb to pair with their wines. This is from the flock that they keep in and around the vineyards. The flock keeps the soil aerated and fertilized, enriching the soil and helping it to absorb water. This was another reason that the vineyards did so well during this wet spring.
A flock of sheep grows fairly quickly and you can only keep a few rams. So they thin the flock of the year old male lambs. A few years ago they began working with local restaurants and now have lamb for sale in their tasting room.
We picked up some chops and some lamb sausage. Watch for those recipes and pairings!
More on Tablas Creek
You can visit the Tablas Creek Vineyard Website for all sorts of information and for their award-winning blog. https://tablascreek.com/
We have written about them extensively on our sister site, Crushed Grape Chronicles. Here are a few of the articles.
- Regenerative Agriculture at Tablas Creek – a meaningful way to farm
- Tablas Creek, BioDynamics
- Regeneration – Exploring Regenerative Viticulture for WWC22 with Jancis Robinson
There is also more to read of our Harvest Diaries
- Beckham Estate Vineyard – Wines, vines, and vessels – The Harvest Diaries 2023
- Montinore Estate and Landlines – The Harvest Diaries 2023
- Syncline Winery in the Columbia Gorge AVA – The Harvest Diaries 2023
- Harvest with Troon Vineyard – Can Wine Save the Planet – The Diaries
- Hedges Family Estate in the Red Mountain AVA of Washington – The Harvest Diaries 2023
- Wilridge Vineyard in Naches Heights – Harvest Diaries 2023 Can Wine Save the Planet?
English
Leave a Reply
Your email is safe with us.